Asheville, N.C. – Winthrop men's basketball fell 93-84 as UNC Asheville used a late run to pull away, Saturday afternoon in Big South action.
 
WINTHROP (13-7, 3-2 Big South)

• Bryce Baker (24 points, 3 rebounds, steal)
• Kelton Talford (21 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, block)
• K.J. Doucet (12 points, 2 rebounds, assist)

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UNC ASHEVILLE (13-6, 3-1 Big South)

• Jordan Marsh (32 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals, block)
• Fletcher Abee (12 points, rebound, assist, 2 steals)
• Josh Banks (12 points, 3 assists, steal)

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FIRST HALF

• It was a one point game with Asheville leading 7-6 at the 16:57 mark after K.J. Doucet scored inside
• Asheville responded with a three from Fletcher Abee to lead 10-6 and start 10-0 run capped off by another three from Abee
• Bulldogs led 21-12 when the Eagles put together a run of their own
• Kelton Talford scored a layup at the 12:27 mark to start a 16-0 run over the next five minutes to lead 28-21
• Talford scored six points during the run that included baskets from five different Eagles
• Yoro Diallo tied the game at 21-21 on a stick back and then Baker put the Eagles in the lead 24-21 with a triple
• Eagles built an eight point advantage at 30-22 with 8:24 to play in the half after a steal and score by Diallo
• Game was tied 36-36 with 2:39 to play in the half when Kasen Harrison found Tommy Kamarad open on the left wing and he buried the three
• Bulldogs outscored the Eagles 5-1 to end the half and lead by one at the break (41-40)

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SECOND HALF

• Doucet scored the first four points out of the half to lead 44-41
• Eagles led 49-45 after two free throws from Talford
• Bulldogs used an 8-0 run to lead 53-49 that was capped off by a Toyaz Solomon dunk
• Teams continued to go back-and-forth over the next seven minutes and the game was tied 73-73 with 8:04 to play after a three from Abee
• Asheville used a 6-0 spurt to lead 79-73 and then Talford cut the deficit to five points at 79-74 with 5:11 to play
• Kameron Taylor answered with a three to start a 10-2 run to open up a double-digit lead for the Bulldogs
• Baker made it a 10 point game as he knocked down his seventh three of the game with 2:06 remaining

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INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Winthrop finished the game shooting 54 percent from the field while Asheville shot 52 percent
• Eagles were 10-for-23 behind the arc while the Bulldogs were 7-of-15
• The two teams combined for 46 free throws as the Eagles were 14-for-22 and Asheville was 20-of-23
• Bulldogs had a slight edge on the boards (32-30) and finished with a 10-9 edge in offensive boards
• Winthrop had 17 turnovers in the game, 13 of which came in the second half while the Bulldogs finished with 10
• Eagles got 36 points from the bench as Bryce Baker led the way with a career-high 24 points 
• There were a total of 10 lead changes and the game was tied 12 times

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NOTABLES

• Kelton Talford posted his 5^th 20-point point game of the season and 21^st of his career as he was 7-of-10 from the field and finished with 21
• Baker's seven threes are the most by an Eagle since Cory Hightower hit seven at LSU on Dec. 17, 2022
• Talford moved within seven points of 3^rd place on the all-time scoring list
• Johnson's 11 points pushes him over 1,300 career points (1,305)

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UP NEXT
There is no midweek game for the Eagles in the coming week as they'll be back in action on Saturday, Jan. 25 when they head to High Point, N.C. to take on High Point at 2 p.m.

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STAY CONNECTED
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